The Canal & River Trust is asking speeding motorists to slow down when crossing the 200 year-old humpback bridges that span the nation’s canal network. The charity, which cares for 2,800 historical bridges, has taken the unprecedented step of installing its first CCTV to catch ‘hit and run’ motorists, who smash into an average of one bridge every week.

Caunsell Bridge Installation

Caunsall Bridge is currently undergoing £30,000 of repairs after damage by a 'hit and run' motorist



Humpback bridges, synonymous with Britain’s canal network, were built for the passage of horse-drawn carts, not for today’s speeding motorists, who cause up to £1 million pounds of damage to bridges each year. The majority of accidents are ‘hit and run’, leaving the Trust unable to recoup the cost of the damage from drivers’ insurers, and diverting vital funds away from work to conserve the nation’s waterways. And the Canal & River Trust is hitting back at irresponsible drivers by installing its first CCTV sensor at an accident humpback hot spot on the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal near Kidderminster.

Caunsall Bridge, which has been hit six times in the last 18 months, is currently undergoing £30,000 of repairs to its parapet following damage from a ‘hit and run’ motorist. If the trial is successful, the Trust will look at installing sensors at other hotspots across the 2,000 miles of canals and rivers in its care.

Nigel Crowe, the Canal & River Trust’s head of heritage, explains: “Whenever you go over a humpback bridge in Britain, you are likely to be going over a canal. These bridges are unique, many are listed as being of special architectural or historical significance, and when damaged they need to be painstakingly repaired at considerable cost. We’ve taken the unusual steps to install the sensor to this particular bridge as it has been repeatedly hit over the last few years. If it is a success, we’ll look to install similar sensors to other humpback accident hot spots. We are also working with the local authorities to improve signage and road markings, but frankly, if motorists just slowed down a bit and took more care and attention then they would stop this daily vandalism of our heritage. It really isn’t rocket science - if you see a hump-back bridge sign, then slow down and you will save yourself and us a great deal of expense and aggravation!”

 

Written by: Alex Smith
Alex Smith is a journalist, copywriter and magazine editor with a long history in boating and a happy addiction to the water. He’s worked on boats, lived on boats, bought boats, sold boats and – when he’s not actually on board a boat – he can generally be found in his Folkestone office, tapping away at the computer and gazing out to sea.